In these gurudwaras, women run the show

While patriarchy is known to have its roots in every nook and cranny of society, a few colony gurudwaras in the city are evening the odds. From prayers to cleaning to even managing the temple account, women run the show all the way.

The Bhagwan Singh Colony Gurudwara near Mahim station has been in existence since 1960, says Aarti Hira, whose 88-year-old mother was one of the first women to take the lead in running the gurudwara. "We are six women who take care of this gurudwara. We have a female domestic help who cleans the premises. We have two Guru Granth Sahibs, one in Sindhi which belongs to a man in the society who reads it out, and one in Gurmukhi, which is read by one of us. Women change the clothes of the Granth Sahib and put him to sleep too," said Hira, who grew up in the society and has been a caretaker for around 10 years.

Hira adds that women perform all the prayers and readings at the gurudwara, and that this is quite common in Sindhi societies. These temples usually house many Hindu gods and goddesses and celebrate as many festivals as they can. Although the colony and the gurudwara is in the name of a male trustee, the day to day activities, festivals and even temple funds are managed by these women.

Near Mahim bus depot is another such gurudwara inside Navjivan society, which has had women caretakers since the past 50 years, according to Radha Lakhani. Lakhani, now 68, has been taking care of the temple for the past 25 years. She took over from her mother-in-law, who had brought an old Granth Sahib from Pakistan and kept it in the colony gurudwara. "We gave the Granth Sahib to Dashmesh Darbar, who completed its final rites (cremation) in Amritsar and gave us a new one. My in-laws used to do a lot of activities here. We used to have Sufi Satsang as well. We celebrate all festivals here and we ladies run the temple account, feed the poor, are in charge of the clothing et all," she said.

Both Hira and Lakhani maintain that women have never been forbidden from taking care of the religious premises. They said that men in the society do not usually find the time to participate in religious activities. Manohar Rohera, who reads the Sindhi Granth Sahib at Bhagwan Singh gurudwara said that women are an integral part of taking care of such institutions. "These are small gurudwaras and are a private affair. I can't imagine them shutting down. The show will go on," he said.

At 'Bhainji ka mandir' in Khar, both men and women are trustees and run the Guru Nanik Seva Mandir Charitable trust. Dedicated to their female spiritual guru Bhainji Maharaj, the gurudwara came up around the 1950s when she shifted from Pakistan. Sulochana Rohera, 83, is one of the trustees and came from Karachi with her in-laws, who were believers of Bhainji Maharaj. "All the activities are taken care of by both and we employ men to run the daily food requirements. We pay for the education of their family members. We have seen many miracles performed by Bhainji maharaj and none of us spend from our own pockets to keep it running. The funds keep coming," she said.

Like Bhainji ka mandir, Navjivan Colony guru mandir in Mumbai Central too has male and female trustees where tasks are equally divided among peers. "This temple has been here for more than 38 years and women take the decisions regarding cooking, prasad and other activities. We have employed a sardar as a caretaker too," said Laveena Shahani, one of the trustees.